Biden to speak at NAACP conference in Las Vegas

The county’s oldest civil rights organization will welcome President Joe Biden during one of the last days of the group’s annual national conference in Las Vegas.

Biden is set to speak on Tuesday around 11 a.m. during the NAACP’s 115th National Convention, which began on Saturday and will run until Wednesday.

The conference, which is being held at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, has also featured remarks from other notable speakers during the conference, including Attorney General Aaron Ford and U.S. Rep. Steven Horsford.

The conference’s theme — “All In” — is meant to reaffirm the group’s commitment to “using our collective ingenuity, creativity and strength” to continue fighting for civil rights and social justice, according to the group’s website.

The conference has also featured panels about environmental justice, faith led advocacy and the ACT-SO competition.

NAACP’s conference won’t be the only one Biden speaks at during his visit in Vegas. The president is also set to speak at the UnidosUS Annual Conference on Wednesday.

The president’s visit to Southern Nevada comes amid calls by some Democrats for Biden to step aside for another Democratic candidate following a shaky presidential debate performance in late June.

But some attendees at the conference said despite his debate performance, they felt he should stay in the race.

Manika Horne, 37, from Las Vegas, said it “wasn’t his (Biden’s) strongest debate,” but said it didn’t deter her from wanting to cast her vote for him.

“I think he came out with some strong points, but it just wasn’t articulated well,” she said.

Horne said she thinks Biden is the best candidate to beat Trump and said she believes it’s too late to try to replace Biden on the Democratic ticket.

“If we can rally behind the president, I think that’s the best choice instead of trying to get someone new in,” she said.

Jerry James, 70, of Bloomington, Illinois, felt like Biden had “a bad night” during the presidential debate, but not because of the president’s age. James said he felt like Biden came for a debate, but Trump’s refusal to directly answer questions threw the president off.

James said he doesn’t believe Biden should step aside for another Democratic candidate.

“I think he’s proven himself to be an effective leader,” James said. “Why are we saying that this one episode is something that defines him forever?”

James, who has been an NAACP member for over two decades, said he wants to hear what Biden’s ideas are for the future and where he wants to take the country during his speech Wednesday.

Kwamara Thompson, 43, said she attended the conference to hear more about the group’s legislative priorities.

“Whether our president was Democrat or Republican, I think it’s nice that that person shows up and says, ‘We want to hear from you all as a constituency’ and understand what your concerns are and how they can be of help,” Thompson said of Biden’s upcoming speech.

Thompson said she plans to vote in November, but feels like the entire political system needs to be restructured.

Thompson, who traveled to the conference from Miami, Florida, is not a member of the NAACP but has done work with ACT-SO, a NAACP youth program.

The group will hold its 2025 conference in Charlotte, North Carolina on July 12-26.

Contact Taylor R. Avery at TAvery@reviewjournal.com. Follow @travery98 on X.